KR101993330B1 - Laser irradiation apparatus and method for manufacturing organic light emitting display apparatus using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a plasma display panel comprising a chamber in which a panel having an organic layer formed on a substrate is disposed, a laser oscillator disposed outside the chamber and capable of irradiating a laser beam on a panel disposed inside the chamber, And a transparent window disposed in the chamber so as to reach the substrate, wherein the laser beam removes an organic layer formed on the substrate, and a method of manufacturing the organic light emitting display using the laser irradiation apparatus.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a laser irradiation apparatus and a method for manufacturing the same,

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a laser irradiation apparatus and a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting display using the same.

In recent years, the display device has been replaced by a thin portable flat display device. Among the flat panel display devices, the organic light emitting display device is a self-luminous display device, and has a wide viewing angle, excellent contrast, and fast response speed, and is attracting attention as a next generation display device.

The organic light emitting display includes an intermediate layer, a first electrode, and a second electrode. The intermediate layer includes an organic light emitting layer. When a voltage is applied to the first electrode and the second electrode, visible light is generated in the organic light emitting layer.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a laser irradiation apparatus capable of removing an organic layer formed on an auxiliary cathode electrode and a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting display using the same.

A laser irradiation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a chamber in which a panel on which an organic layer is formed is disposed; A laser oscillator disposed outside the chamber and capable of irradiating a laser beam on a panel disposed inside the chamber; And a transparent window disposed in the chamber so that the laser beam can reach the substrate; And the laser beam can remove the organic layer formed on the substrate.

An auxiliary electrode and a pixel electrode are disposed on the substrate, and the organic layer may be formed on the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode.

The auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode may be formed of the same material.

The auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode may be formed on the substrate so as to be spaced apart from each other.

The laser oscillator may remove the organic layer by irradiating the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode with the laser beam.

The laser oscillator may move on the organic layer to irradiate the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode with the laser beam.

The transparent window is transmissive to the laser beam.

The chamber may maintain a vacuum in the chamber such that the organic layer on the substrate transferred into the chamber is not discolored.

And a pump for maintaining a vacuum state in the chamber.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting diode display, the method including: providing a panel on which a sub electrode and a pixel electrode are formed; Forming an organic layer on the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode; And irradiating a laser beam onto the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode to remove the organic layer; .

The auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode may be formed of the same material.

The auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode may be formed on the substrate so as to be spaced apart from each other.

The organic layer removing step may include: transferring the panel into a chamber of a laser irradiation apparatus; Irradiating the laser beam onto the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode; And removing the organic layer irradiated with the laser beam on the auxiliary electrode; ≪ / RTI >

The laser oscillator for generating the laser beam may be disposed outside the chamber.

The chamber may include a transparent window through which the laser beam can pass into the chamber.

The laser oscillator may move on the auxiliary electrode to irradiate the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode with the laser beam.

The chamber can create and maintain a vacuum within the chamber to prevent denaturation of the organic layer.

The vacuum state is maintained by a pump, which can be connected to the chamber.

The panel includes a thin film transistor formed on the first substrate, a passivation film covering the thin film transistor, a pixel electrode formed on the passivation film and connected to the thin film transistor, and a pixel electrode formed on the passivation film, And a second opening for exposing the auxiliary electrode.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the size of the chamber to be maintained in a vacuum state can be minimized.

1 is a schematic view showing a laser irradiation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing an organic light emitting display device to which a laser beam is irradiated.
FIGS. 3 to 10 are cross-sectional views of a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a schematic view showing a laser irradiation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a laser irradiation apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a chamber 11, a transparent window 12, a pump 13, and a laser oscillator 14.

The chamber 11 is transported and disposed with the panel 20 being in the process of manufacturing the OLED display. The manufacturing facility 16 of the organic light emitting display may be disposed on one side of the chamber 11. [ The panel 20 is transferred into the chamber 11 from other equipments such as an evaporator and the organic layer formed on the panel 20 in the chamber 11 can be removed. This will be described later. A door 15 may be disposed between the chamber 11 and the manufacturing facility 16. The door 15 is opened when the panel 20 is transferred from the manufacturing facility 16 to the chamber 11 or when the panel 20 is transferred from the chamber 11 to the manufacturing facility 16, The door 15 is closed.

The chamber 11 keeps the inside thereof in a vacuum state. The chamber 11 maintains the interior of the chamber in a vacuum state to such an extent that the organic layer (111 in Fig. 2) on the panel 20 is not denatured. A pump 13 may be disposed on one side of the chamber 11. The pump 13 is connected to the chamber 11 to regulate the pressure in the chamber 11 and to maintain and maintain a vacuum so that the organic layer (111 in FIG. 2) on the panel 20 is not denatured. The pump 13 may be a cryopump.

A transparent window 12 may be disposed on one side of the chamber 11. The transparent window 12 can transmit a laser beam. That is, the transparent window 12 transmits the laser beam L emitted from the laser oscillator 14 disposed outside the chamber 11 to reach the panel 20 disposed in the chamber 11.

The laser oscillator 14 generates a laser beam and irradiates the panel 20 located in the chamber 11. The organic layer formed on the panel 20 can be removed by the laser beam. A laser oscillator (14) is disposed outside the chamber (11). The laser beam generated in the chamber 11 is incident into the chamber 11 through the transparent window 12 and the laser beam incident into the chamber 11 is irradiated to the panel 20 to remove the organic layer . As described above, the laser irradiation apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is arranged such that the laser oscillator 14 is disposed outside the chamber 11, not in the chamber 11, The size can be minimized to such an extent that it can be placed. In addition, since the laser oscillator 14 is disposed outside the chamber 11, it is also easy to maintain the vacuum inside the chamber 11.

2 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a panel of an organic light emitting display device to which a laser beam is irradiated.

2, the panel 20 includes a thin film transistor (TFT) formed on a substrate 101, an interlayer insulating film 107 covering the TFT, a passivation film 108 formed on the interlayer insulating film 107, A pixel electrode 120, an auxiliary electrode 109, and an organic layer 111. The pixel defining layer 110 is formed on the pixel defining layer 110, A detailed description of the panel 20 will be given later.

The auxiliary electrode 109 and the pixel electrode 120 are formed apart from each other. One side of the pixel electrode 120 is exposed by the first opening 121 of the pixel defining layer 110 and the auxiliary electrode 109 is exposed by the second opening 122 of the pixel defining layer 110, Lt; / RTI > An organic layer 111 may be formed on the auxiliary electrode 109 and the pixel electrode 120. The organic layer 111a on the pixel electrode 120 emits light between the pixel electrode 120 and the counter electrode (112 in FIG. 10).

However, the auxiliary electrode 109 comes into direct contact with the counter electrode (112 in Fig. 10) as shown in Fig. Therefore, the organic layer 111b formed on the auxiliary electrode 109 must be removed before the counter electrode 112 is formed. After the organic layer 111 is formed on the panel 20, the panel 20 is transferred into the chamber 11 of the laser irradiation apparatus 10, and the organic layer 111 on the auxiliary electrode 109 Is removed. That is, after the panel 20 is transferred into the chamber 11, the door 15 is closed, and the pressure in the chamber 11 is maintained in a vacuum state in which the organic layer 111 is not denatured. The laser oscillator 14 moves on the panel 20 to remove the organic layer 111b by irradiating the organic layer 111b on the auxiliary electrode 109 to be removed with the laser beam L. [

FIGS. 3 to 10 are cross-sectional views of a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

First, an auxiliary layer 102 is formed on the substrate 101, as shown in FIG. In detail, the substrate 101 may be formed of a transparent glass material having SiO2 as a main component. The substrate 101 is not limited thereto, and various substrates such as a transparent plastic material or a metal material can be used.

On the other hand, an auxiliary layer 102 such as a barrier layer, a blocking layer, and / or a buffer layer is provided for preventing impurity ions from diffusing on the upper surface of the substrate 101, preventing penetration of moisture or outside air, . The auxiliary layer 102 may be formed by various deposition methods such as plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), atmospheric pressure CVD (APCVD), and low pressure CVD (LPCVD) using SiO2 and / have.

An active layer 103 of a thin film transistor (TFT) is formed on the auxiliary layer 102. In detail, a polycrystalline silicon layer (not shown) is formed by first depositing an amorphous silicon layer (not shown) on the auxiliary layer 102 and then crystallizing the amorphous silicon layer (not shown). The amorphous silicon may be formed by rapid thermal annealing (RTA), solid phase crystallization (SPC), excimer laser annealing (ELA), metal induced crystallization (MIC), metal induced lateral crystallization (MILC) And can be crystallized by various methods. Then, the polycrystalline silicon layer is patterned into the active layer 103 of the thin film transistor (TFT) by a mask process.

4, a gate insulating film 104 is formed on the entire surface of the substrate 101 so as to cover the active layer 103, and a gate electrode (not shown) is formed on the gate insulating film 104 corresponding to the active layer 103 105 are formed.

The gate insulating film 104 may be formed by an inorganic insulating film such as SiNx or SiOx by a PECVD method, an APCVD method, or an LPCVD method. The gate insulating film 104 is interposed between the active layer 103 and the gate electrode 105 of the thin film transistor TFT to insulate them.

The gate electrode 105 is formed to correspond to the center of the active layer 103 and the active layer 103 is doped with an n-type or p-type impurity using the gate electrode 105 as a self- The source / drain regions 103b and 103c and the channel region 103a therebetween are formed at the edges of the active layer 103 corresponding to both sides of the electrode 105. [ Here, the impurity may be a boron (B) ion or a phosphorus (P) ion.

The gate electrode 105 may include at least one material selected from Ag, Mg, Al, Pt, Pd, Au, Ni, Nd, Ir, Cr, Li, Ca, Mo, Ti, W, MoW and Cu. As a modification, the gate electrode 105 may be formed in a three-layer structure of Mo - Al - Mo.

5, an interlayer insulating film 107 is formed on the entire surface of the substrate 101 on which the gate electrode 105 is formed, and an interlayer insulating film 107 is formed on the entire surface of the source / drain regions 103b and 103c, Electrodes 106a and 106b are formed.

The interlayer insulating film 107 may be formed by a method such as spin coating with one or more organic insulating materials selected from the group consisting of polyimide, polyamide, acrylic resin, benzocyclobutene, and phenol resin. The interlayer insulating film 107 is formed to have a sufficient thickness and is formed thicker than, for example, the above-described gate insulating film 104 to insulate the gate electrode 105 of the thin film transistor TFT from the source / drain electrodes 106a and 106b . The interlayer insulating film 107 may be formed of an inorganic insulating material such as the above-described gate insulating film 104 as well as the organic insulating material as described above. Alternately, the organic insulating material and the inorganic insulating material may be alternatively formed.

In the interlayer insulating film 107, via holes H1 and H2 for exposing the source / drain regions 103b and 103c are formed. The via hole H1 exposes a part of the source region 103b and the via hole H2 exposes a part of the drain region 103c.

 A conductive layer (not shown) is formed on the interlayer insulating film 107 after the via holes H1 and H2 are formed in the interlayer insulating film 107 and the via holes H1 and H2 are formed. The conductive layer is patterned through a mask process to form the source / drain electrodes 106a and 106b.

6, the source / drain electrodes 106a and 106b form a passivation film 108 on the entire surface of the substrate 101. In this case, The passivation film 108 may be formed of an inorganic insulating material. The passivation film 108 is formed with a contact hole H3 for exposing a part of the drain electrode 106b. The pixel electrode 120 and the drain electrode 106b are brought into contact with each other through the contact hole H3.

After the formation of the passivation film 108, a conductive layer (not shown) is formed on the passivation film 108, and the conductive layer is patterned to form the pixel electrode 120 and the auxiliary electrode 109. The pixel electrode 120 is brought into contact with the drain electrode 106b through the contact hole H3 as described above. The pixel electrode 120 and the auxiliary electrode 109 are made of the same material and can be formed by the same process.

Next, a pixel defining layer (PDL) 110 is formed on the substrate 101 as shown in FIG.

In detail, an insulating layer (not shown) is formed on the entire surface of the substrate 101 on which the pixel electrode 120 and the auxiliary electrode 109 are formed. At this time, the insulating layer may be formed by spin coating or the like with one or more organic insulating materials selected from the group consisting of polyimide, polyamide, acrylic resin, benzocyclobutene, and phenol resin. The insulating layer may be formed of an inorganic insulating material selected from the group consisting of SiO2, SiNx, Al2O3, CuOx, Tb4O7, Y2O3, Nb2O5, and Pr2O3 as well as the organic insulating material. In addition, the insulating layer may be formed in a multi-layer structure in which an organic insulating material and an inorganic insulating material are alternated.

The insulating layer is patterned by a mask process so that holes H4 and H5 are formed to expose a central portion of the pixel electrode 120 and a central portion of the auxiliary electrode 109. [ The first opening 121 is formed by the hole H4 and the second opening 122 is formed by the hole H5. A portion of the pixel electrode 120 is exposed by the first opening 121 , And a part of the auxiliary electrode 109 is exposed by the second opening 122.

8, an organic layer 111 including a light emitting layer is formed in the first and second openings 121 and 122 exposing the pixel electrode 120 and the auxiliary electrode 109, respectively.

The organic layer 111 includes an emissive layer (EML), a hole transport layer (HTL), a hole injection layer (HIL), an electron transport layer (ETL) And an electron injection layer (EIL) may be stacked in a single or a composite structure.

The organic light emitting layer may be a low molecular weight or a high molecular organic material.

In the case where the organic light emitting layer is formed of a low molecular organic material, the organic layer 111 is formed by laminating a hole transport layer and a hole injection layer in the direction of the pixel electrode 120 with the organic light emitting layer as a center, An injection layer and the like are stacked. In addition, various layers can be stacked as needed. At this time, usable organic materials may also be selected from copper phthalocyanine (CuPc), N, N-di (naphthalen-1-yl) -N, N'- (NPB), tris-8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq3), and the like.

In the case where the organic light emitting layer is formed of a polymer organic material, the organic layer 111 may include only the hole transporting layer in the direction of the pixel electrode 120 with the organic light emitting layer as the center. The hole transport layer may be formed by a method such as inkjet printing or spin coating using a polyethylene dihydroxythiophene (PEDOT: poly- (2,4) -ethylene-dihydroxy thiophene) or polyaniline As shown in FIG. In this case, a polymer organic material such as poly-phenylenevinylene (PPV) or polyfluorene may be used as the organic material. In addition, a color pattern may be formed by a conventional method such as inkjet printing, spin coating, Can be formed.

Next, the organic layer 111b formed on the auxiliary electrode 109 is removed as shown in FIG.

After the organic layer 111 is formed, the panel 20 is transferred to the chamber 11 of the laser irradiation apparatus 10 for removing the organic layer 111b. After the panel 20 is transferred into the chamber 11, the door 15 is closed and the pressure in the chamber 11 is maintained in a vacuum state in which the organic layer 111 is not denatured. The laser oscillator 14 moves on the panel 20 to remove the organic layer 111b by irradiating the organic layer 111b on the auxiliary electrode 109 to be removed with the laser beam L. [

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the counter electrode 112 is formed on the substrate 101 so as to cover the organic layer 111 and make contact with the auxiliary electrode 109.

The counter electrode 112 may be deposited on the entire surface of the substrate 101 to form a common electrode. In the organic light emitting display according to the present embodiment, the pixel electrode 120 is used as an anode electrode, and the counter electrode 112 is used as a cathode electrode.

The counter electrode 112 can contact the auxiliary electrode 109 to reduce the resistance of the counter electrode 112. [

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

10: laser irradiation device
11: chamber
12: Transparent window
13: Pump
14: laser oscillator
15: Door
16: Manufacturing facilities

Claims (19)

A chamber in which a panel including an auxiliary electrode and a pixel electrode positioned on a substrate and an organic layer positioned on the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode is disposed;
A laser oscillator disposed outside the chamber, the laser oscillator being capable of irradiating a laser beam on a panel disposed within the chamber; And
A transparent window disposed in the chamber such that the laser beam can reach the substrate; And,
Wherein the laser oscillator irradiates a laser beam only on the organic layer located on the auxiliary electrode,
The chamber includes a door connected to the manufacturing facility for forming the organic layer and spatially separating the panel from the manufacturing facility for forming the organic layer,
Further comprising a pump disposed on one side of the chamber for evacuating the inner atmosphere. delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode are made of the same material. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode are spaced apart from each other. delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the laser oscillator moves onto the organic layer so as to irradiate only the organic layer on the auxiliary electrode with the laser beam. delete delete delete Providing a panel having an auxiliary electrode and a pixel electrode formed on a substrate;
Forming an organic layer on the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode; And
Irradiating only the organic layer formed on the auxiliary electrode with a laser beam to remove the organic layer; And,
In the step of forming the organic layer, the organic layer is formed directly on the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode, which are the same material,
The step of removing the organic layer includes:
Transferring the panel comprising the organic layer into a chamber of a laser irradiation apparatus; And
And irradiating the laser beam only on an organic layer located on the auxiliary electrode,
Forming a counter electrode after the step of removing the organic layer, wherein the counter electrode is in direct contact with the auxiliary electrode. delete 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the auxiliary electrode and the pixel electrode are spaced apart from each other. delete 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the laser oscillator for generating the laser beam is disposed outside the chamber. 15. The method of claim 14,
Wherein the chamber includes a transparent window through which the laser beam can pass into the chamber. 15. The method of claim 14,
Wherein the laser oscillator moves on the auxiliary electrode to irradiate the laser beam only on the organic layer on the auxiliary electrode. 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the chamber is converted into a vacuum state. 18. The method of claim 17,
Wherein the vacuum state is maintained by a pump connected to the chamber. 11. The method of claim 10,
The panel includes a thin film transistor formed on the substrate, a passivation film covering the thin film transistor, a pixel electrode formed on the passivation film and connected to the thin film transistor, and a passivation film formed on the passivation film, And a pixel defining layer having a first opening and a second opening exposing the auxiliary electrode.

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